Comments: Do you wish to grill in the depths of winter? (and Southern California and Miami Beach, we are not talking to you!) Rick Browne wants you to – and he wants you to grill in the spring, the blustery days of autumn, and, of course, in the summer. He sees no reason why the trend of eating (and cooking) seasonally should not extend to your grill, even if it is outside.

Mr. Browne, who is in his seventh year of hosting the PBS show Barbecue America, opens the book with his tips and guidelines for grilling, including thoughts on the grill itself, indirect and direct heat, sanitation, gear and gadgets to use, rubs, sauces, brines, etc. The following chapters include a couple of whole recipes for each of the seasons as well as many individual recipes that are more or less season-specific.

And these are not all hunks of meat. In each season, there are recipes for seafood, biscuits/breads, salads, casseroles, vegetables, and desserts, although there are plenty of whole birds and slabs of meat, too. There is also an international element (Moroccan Lamb Ribs, Satay-Stuffed Pork Loin, etc.) to add to the variety. Not every recipe is actually a grill/barbecue recipe (the Cajun Deep-Fried Turkey being a prime example), but they all fit into the general theme of the book – cook outdoors, the weather be damned!

Grilling for All Seasons is like many barbecue cookbooks – a little more casual, perhaps scattered, than many cookbooks on the market. It also has more personality than many sanitized cookbooks. Whether intentional or not, we would characterize this as a book meant for men. There are comments at the front about how nice it is to slip out to the grill when the house is full of relatives visiting for various winter holidays, with the added bonus that "the brew stays cold." (Actually those comments could apply to anyone....)

For those days when there is just too much snow on the grill, or you (or your spouse) are being a total wuss, Browne notes that many or most of the recipes can be prepared indoors, in the oven or on top of the stove.